Chapter Summaries

Key plot points and events

• An Earth-Fire Cult member gives a messenger an unusually potent pill, warning him to drink water and avoid inflammatory foods. The messenger swallows it, then buries himself in a pit to endure its effects.
• After three days, Zhang Kun gives Xu Feng a new needle pouch and carrying bag; Master also receives a pouch and buys supplies. They set off toward Third Grandpa Temple Village, traveling by day and hiding at night.
• The village is wary of outsiders. At its entrance stand three enormous locust trees, heavily worshipped with incense. Through the Owl Button, Xu Feng senses a cold, sinister presence around them, though Master sees nothing unusual. Master explains that the trees—Great General, Left General, and Right General—gave the village its name and are regarded as sacred.
• Master and Xu Feng climb to the Three Matron Temple to visit its keeper, Mr. Li. The small temple’s first courtyard is sealed and quiet; Mr. Li soon appears, recognizes Master by his childhood name, “Erwazi,” and says he is in his final year.
• Mr. Li welcomes Xu Feng as Master’s apprentice and invites them inside. In the inner courtyard, which contains several different rooms and active incense burners, Xu Feng senses something through a sudden gust and signals Master to ask where they should put their gear.

Character developments

• Xu Feng is increasingly alert to supernatural signs and uneasy surroundings. His suspicions about the trees and the village’s layout show his growing caution, while his questions reveal how much he still relies on Master’s knowledge.
• Master remains protective and deferential to Mr. Li, but his inability to explain Xu Feng’s perceptions hints that his knowledge has limits. Mr. Li’s familiarity with him reveals a past connection not yet explained.
• Mr. Li is frail in appearance but seems unusually vigorous. His remark that this is his last year gives the visit a sense of urgency.
• The messenger endures a dangerous cultivation process, suggesting the Earth-Fire Cult is continuing its preparations.

Significant themes

• Unease and hidden danger: The village’s guarded residents, ominous trees, and sealed temple rooms make an ordinary rural setting feel potentially threatening.
• Faith, history, and transformation: Sacred trees and the temple’s changing name preserve traces of the village’s past, though their full significance remains unclear.
• Knowledge and uncertainty: Xu Feng notices things Master cannot, underscoring the limits of authority and the importance of independent perception.
• Mortality and timing: Mr. Li’s “last year” suggests a narrowing window for the encounter and raises questions about what Master hopes to learn.

Character interactions

• Xu Feng questions Master about the locust trees and the temple’s name; Master offers local history but cannot explain Xu Feng’s discomfort.
• At the temple, Mr. Li greets Master warmly as “Erwazi,” recalls his earlier visits, and welcomes Xu Feng as his apprentice.
• Xu Feng communicates his concern about their weapons and ritual equipment through a gesture, and Master asks Mr. Li where they should leave them.

Plot points and events

• Mr. Li recognizes the baleful objects Xu Feng and his master carry, as well as their hidden Yin Virtue. He reassures them that good intentions matter more than baleful energy and leads them through the temple’s guest rooms, where divine statues and tablets are lodged.
• Xu Feng senses kindness from a statue and, at Mr. Li’s suggestion, offers it incense. The system identifies the recipient as the Longflow River God, whose favorability toward Xu Feng—and the Longflow Basin Earth God—rises greatly.
• Mr. Li explains that the River God once held broad authority, but worship of him became fragmented among other deities, and his temple was destroyed in war. His rescued statue now resides at the temple.
• Xu Feng visits the Three Matron Temple, which enshrines Nüwa, Houtu, and the Weifang Holy Mother. Mr. Li explains that local belief treats the three as different aspects of a single deity: Nüwa. Xu Feng realizes that inviting Houtu may be far harder than he hoped and sinks into comic, exhausted resignation.
• The scene shifts to Luoyin County jail, where the conditions are so foul and spiritually oppressive that prisoners often die before execution. A statue of Lord Guan serves as the Prison God, suppressing the jail’s baleful energy. Earth-Fire Cult prisoners are being kept alive under strict orders.
• A punishment-office clerk leaves the jail and asks Old Ma who in the county has the toughest life and could serve as a “warding guest.”

Character developments and interactions

• Xu Feng grows more confident that the temple houses powerful deities, but his optimism about securing Houtu’s help collapses when he learns the local theology identifies her with Nüwa. His earnest incense offering also earns favor from a major river deity.
• Mr. Li proves perceptive and hospitable, recognizing Xu Feng’s hidden protections and guiding him through local religious customs. He invites Xu Feng to call him “Grandpa Li,” reflecting his closeness with Xu Feng’s master.
• Xu Feng and his master defer to Mr. Li’s advice and share a respectful, familiar relationship with him.
• The clerk is weary and repelled by the jail, yet follows the magistrate’s instructions. His search for someone unusually resilient suggests a dangerous or supernatural task ahead.

Significant themes

• Intention and moral character: Baleful power need not make someone evil if they act honestly and with good intentions.
• Local belief and religious complexity: Deities may hold multiple offices, and regional traditions can merge figures who seem distinct elsewhere.
• Hope checked by reality: Xu Feng’s plans meet an unexpected theological obstacle, turning his grand hopes into weary acceptance.
• Spiritual forces in ordinary institutions: Shrines and divine protection operate even in places as grim as a county jail, where the supernatural shapes survival.

Key plot points and events

• Old Ma is asked by Third Master Wang to find a Spirit Suppressor for the County Yamen. The court has ordered the Earth-Fire Cult prisoners executed soon, and officials want their sorcery neutralized and their spirits dealt with through a series of protective rites.
• Old Ma recommends Xu Feng, the Corpse Stitcher’s apprentice, as the county’s strongest candidate. He cites Xu’s survival of a dangerous Yellow River crossing, his return with corpses—including a powerful Ancient Corpse—and his service as a Spirit-Bait for the now-destroyed Qian Family.
• Third Master Wang accepts the recommendation. He then spreads Xu’s extraordinary reputation among his colleagues, who quickly come to regard the unknown young man as nearly superhuman. Their praise inadvertently helps Xu meet one of his goals: earning a rating of “Beyond Expectations.”
• At the Earth God Shrine, Xu Feng and his Master explain their request to Mr. Li: they hope to bring the Houtu Goddess’s divine presence to their home. Mr. Li agrees to try, but warns that he expects to die this year and cannot remain the shrine’s keeper.
• Master is surprised that Mr. Li faces death despite having crossed the Life-and-Death Mystery Gate. Mr. Li explains that he failed to nurture a Divine Embryo, so his breakthrough did not prevent his eventual death. He invites them to pray for an auspicious sign from the Houtu Goddess.

Character developments and interactions

• Old Ma is cautious about recommending Xu Feng because he fears the young man’s powerful fate could bring misfortune, but he ultimately speaks confidently on Xu’s behalf.
• Third Master Wang comes across as reasonable and good-tempered, yet wary of Xu’s ominous reputation. He trusts Old Ma’s judgment and turns Xu into a subject of enthusiastic office gossip.
• Xu Feng gains a formidable reputation without being present or even having met the clerks. The chapter highlights the gap between his growing legend and the ordinary circumstances of his actual life.
• Mr. Li is calm and accepting about his approaching death. He gently discourages Master’s objections and prioritizes helping the visitors before explaining the shrine’s uncertain future.
• Master is deeply concerned about Mr. Li and presses him about his breakthrough, while Xu listens and begins connecting the cultivation concept to the inscription at the Ancient People’s Tomb.

Significant themes

• Reputation and rumor: Xu’s past exploits are amplified into a myth, showing how others’ stories can shape his standing.
• Fate and supernatural danger: Xu’s unusually strong fate makes him valuable as a Spirit Suppressor but also unsettling to those around him.
• Mortality and cultivation: Crossing a major cultivation threshold does not guarantee immortality; Mr. Li’s failed Divine Embryo leaves him mortal.
• Duty and succession: Mr. Li’s impending death raises questions about who will care for the shrine, even as he remains committed to serving the goddess and helping others.

Chapter Summary

Key plot points and events

• Xu Feng attempts to invite the Three Matron Temple’s deities—especially Houtu—to accompany him to Luoyin County and help protect the town and Master from the Earth-Fire Cult.
• He prepares a sincere written petition and performs the temple ritual under Mr. Li’s guidance. The incense smoke rises straight up, and the petition-burning produces no response: the invitation to Houtu fails.
• As Xu Feng finishes the ritual, the divination cylinder mysteriously falls, scattering sticks before him. Mr. Li says the Nüwa Goddess has provided a direction: the auspicious sticks point toward another deity. Xu Feng initially tries to interpret their arrangement too elaborately, until Mr. Li explains that he should simply follow their direction.
• The indicated deity is the Longflow River God. Xu Feng respectfully repeats the invitation ritual. This time the system confirms that the offering and petition are accepted, the deity consents, and the process advances through several formal stages.
• Mr. Li later explains that Houtu could not have left anyway: the temple statues were moved there temporarily, and the time has come for them to return. He also criticizes Xu Feng’s ritual as crude and lacking proper decorum.

Character developments

• Xu Feng accepts the failure to invite Houtu without resentment. He believes neither people nor immortals owe him help, and remains committed to protecting Luoyin County and Master. Once directed toward the Longflow River God, he treats the deity with even greater respect, recognizing that he may become an important ally.
• Mr. Li serves as ritual guide and interpreter. He is unsurprised by Xu Feng’s failure with Houtu, but pleased by Xu Feng’s humility and persistence. He also reveals substantial knowledge of the temple’s deities and customs.
• Master watches the ritual and is surprised when the divination cylinder falls, then joins the others in paying respects.

Character interactions

• Mr. Li instructs Xu Feng through the invitation ritual and later helps him understand the fallen divination sticks.
• Xu Feng openly explains his lack of disappointment to Mr. Li, who encourages him not to become trapped in discouragement.
• The mysterious fall of the divination cylinder functions as a message from the Nüwa Goddess, redirecting Xu Feng toward the Longflow River God.
• Xu Feng’s respectful dealings with the newly indicated deity contrast with his initial, unsuccessful attempt to invite Houtu.

Significant themes

• Humility and sincere intent: Xu Feng acts from a genuine desire to protect others and accepts the outcome without feeling entitled to divine aid.
• Persistence and adaptation: Failure does not end his efforts; he follows the guidance he receives and tries another path.
• Ritual, tradition, and proper conduct: The chapter emphasizes the importance of ritual procedure, while Mr. Li’s criticism suggests Xu Feng still has much to learn.
• Changing status versus enduring power: The Longflow River God’s diminished fame does not mean he lacks strength; a deity’s reputation and actual potential are not the same.

• Mr. Li prepares Xu Feng for the ritual: While Xu Feng brings food to the watchful coachman, Mr. Li gives him a handwritten introductory book about inviting gods and explains that he will lead Xu Feng through the ritual that night. He also offers practical guidance for establishing Xu Feng’s temple, including placing the Earth God in the front hall and the Longflow River God in the main hall. Mr. Li will determine the auspicious dates.
• The meaning of “ritual invitation”: Xu Feng asks why the ritual cannot permanently take the local Houtu Goddess away. Mr. Li explains that a ritual invitation moves a deity’s spiritual presence temporarily—“borrowing” its light, which must eventually be returned. The Houtu Goddess’s presence at the Third Grandpa Temple was only a lingering echo; the temple originally worshipped the Three Tree Generals, and the Houtu Goddess’s true spirit had been transferred there long ago. Xu Feng begins to understand the tragedy surrounding the temple, but his master, Zhao San, stops him from asking more.
• Xu Feng learns the hand seals: After Zhao San leaves to prepare the ritual materials, Mr. Li secretly teaches Xu Feng several hand seals, palm-based correspondences to the Eight Trigrams and calendar systems, and their meanings. Xu Feng’s strong memory lets him repeat the lesson accurately. He learns the Incense-Offering, Appeal, and Offering-Acceptance Seals; his Skill Bar records the knowledge as Hand Seals (Initial Exposure). Mr. Li cautions that full use requires formulas and visualization he is forbidden to teach, and that Xu Feng must rely on sufficient Yin Virtue. He urges him to do good deeds, saying this can change his fate.
• Farewell and revelation: The next morning, after the temple relocation is completed, Xu Feng leaves the village with food Mr. Li has packed for him. Mr. Li says that every meeting means one fewer meeting, but Xu Feng insists they will meet again—partly because he expects to return to welcome the god. On the road, Xu Feng asks Zhao San why he had been so unhappy. Zhao San initially refuses to answer, then admits the truth: Mr. Li’s son and the son’s entire family are gone; only Mr. Li’s daughter and son-in-law were sent elsewhere.
  Character developments and interactions: Mr. Li is generous and affectionate toward Xu Feng, treating him like a grandson and passing on what knowledge he can. Xu Feng grows more capable and curious, while showing unusual certainty about seeing Mr. Li again. Zhao San remains protective and guarded, but eventually reveals the painful reason for his sorrow.
  Themes: The chapter emphasizes spiritual knowledge as a responsibility tied to virtue, the temporary nature of divine presence and human relationships, and grief that adults try to conceal from the young.

Key plot points and events

• Master tells Xu Feng that Mr. Li’s son and entire family supposedly died of a mysterious illness and were cremated. Master suspects there is more to the story but accepts that Mr. Li will not explain.
• Their conversation turns to cultivation. Master describes the Life-and-Death Mystery Gate, the Immortal Embryo, and the Yang Spirit, though his knowledge is limited. Xu Feng concludes that this cultivation gate is probably unrelated to the similarly named gate at the Ancient People’s Tomb.
• During the journey home, Xu Feng studies Mr. Li’s introductory book on inviting gods and shrine rituals. His existing Inviting Divine Protection skill improves, and he gains initial proficiency in Inviting the Gods, a broader practice involving hand seals, incantations, and ceremonies.
• Back at the Earth God Shrine, Xu Feng and Master offer incense and paper, recount their journey to the Earth God, and leave the Longflow River God’s notice and calling card at the shrine as a formal announcement that another god will be invited onto the land.
• Doctor Qi tells them the county authorities are seeking them for official work. He also relays a message from Uncle Liu, the county executioner, so they visit him first.
• Uncle Liu reveals that rumors have made Xu Feng notorious: he is credited with supernatural feats and saddled with strange nicknames such as “Walking Calamity” and “Too Fierce for the River.” On the strength of this reputation, the County Yamen plans to appoint Xu Feng Prison-Warding Immortal Official on the final day of the Earth-Fire Cult members.

Character developments and interactions

• Xu Feng remains curious and tactful, probing Master’s knowledge while recognizing its limits. He turns Mr. Li’s book into practical learning and is surprised—and uneasy—at the exaggerated reputation spreading in his absence.
• Master is visibly grieving over Mr. Li’s family and avoids pressing Mr. Li’s account. He shares what little he knows about cultivation, then resumes their shrine duties.
• Doctor Qi greets their return with teasing remarks but quickly passes on news of the county’s summons and Uncle Liu’s message.
• Uncle Liu explains the rumors and the authorities’ plan; Xu Feng and Master listen beneath the estate tree rather than entering the mourning household.

Significant themes

• Rumor and reputation: Xu Feng’s ordinary actions have been transformed into fantastical legends, with real consequences for his official role.
• Knowledge and uncertainty: Master’s fragmentary cultivation lore and the suspicious account of Mr. Li’s family show how much remains unexplained.
• Ritual, responsibility, and learning: Xu Feng’s study and careful shrine observances deepen his skills and prepare him for greater religious duties.

Plot and key events

• Xu Feng learns that a Spirit Suppressor—grandly titled the “Prison-Warding Immortal Official”—performs rituals to contain a condemned prisoner’s resentment and baleful energy. Uncle Liu explains that the role is dangerous and requires someone with a strong fate.
• The executions are being prepared unusually early because the court has ordered the Earth-Fire Cult wiped out. Members will be executed en masse; registered members face slow dismemberment, requiring several executioners.
• Uncle Liu confirms he must take part. He has prepared a new Soul Bottle and plans to cleanse himself at a temple before returning to the funeral hall. Master explains to Xu Feng that an executioner’s Soul Bottle contains the karma accumulated through executions, preventing it from passing to descendants.
• On the ride to County Town, Xu Feng worries about the Earth-Fire Cult and the mysterious corpse-sewing incident he suspects is coming. Master says the cult’s beliefs are deeply twisted, including a saying that a person is reborn through the one who kills them, though he assures Xu Feng the cult will not come after them.
• At the county yamen, Old Ma is relieved to see Xu Feng and treats him as the only suitable Spirit Suppressor. Officials sneak looks at Xu Feng before Old Ma takes him and Master to dinner.
• Old Ma outlines a three-day ritual: Xu Feng will sit in the jail and crack a whip on the first day, ride around it on the second, and on the third night wear the Prison-Warding regalia and seal the prisoners’ seven orifices. Xu Feng points out that he will be the prisoners’ last sight and may attract their revenge. Old Ma insists that, in the regalia, Xu Feng will be the Prison God—not himself—and the prisoners will seek the divine figure instead.

Character developments and interactions

• Xu Feng is curious and observant, but increasingly uneasy about the Earth-Fire Cult and the ritual’s risks. He listens closely to Master and Uncle Liu, then questions Old Ma’s reassurance rather than accepting it outright.
• Master acts as Xu Feng’s guide, explaining the Soul Bottle and cautioning him about the cult. His concern shows when Uncle Liu reveals he must participate in the executions.
• Uncle Liu is resigned to his duty as an executioner. He discusses its hazards matter-of-factly and takes comfort in knowing his Soul Bottle is safe.
• Old Ma is eager to secure Xu Feng for the role and has come to believe Xu Feng is uniquely suited to it, partly because the yamen’s officers have reinforced one another’s confidence in his reputation.
• Xu Feng’s exchanges with Master and Uncle Liu are trusting and instructional; his conversation with Old Ma is more skeptical, as he tests the logic behind the ritual’s promised protection.

Significant themes

• Ritual, belief, and spiritual danger: Titles, regalia, and rites are treated as practical protections, but their power—and the dangers they address—remain uncertain.
• Karma and inherited consequences: The Soul Bottle is meant to contain an executioner’s accumulated karma, while the cult’s teachings blur the line between death, rebirth, and revenge.
• Reputation and authority: Xu Feng’s reputation persuades the yamen that he is indispensable, even as he remains young and unsure of what the role entails.
• Duty and mortality: Uncle Liu cannot refuse the execution assignment, and the chapter emphasizes the physical and spiritual costs of carrying out state violence.

Key plot points and events

• Xu Feng and his Master finalize arrangements with Old Ma for Xu Feng to play the “Prince” during the prison ceremony. The payment is generous, and Old Ma takes responsibility for the arrangement.
• Before the ceremony, Xu Feng and his Master visit Old Owl’s Funeral Hall to pay respects. Xu Feng studies the estate’s layout and realizes it has been designed as a vast, three-dimensional version of the Ghost-Trapping Method.
• He spots a black bird he remembers from Old Owl’s home. Suspecting it may be a Ghost-Eating Servant, he chooses not to investigate.
• Xu Feng commissions a new Earth God Shrine, directing the Old Shopkeeper on its design. The shopkeeper is unsettled by Xu Feng’s reputation and the purpose of the ambitious structure.
• Xu Feng spends the next day intensely trying to understand Old Owl’s Ghost-Trapping Method. Using details of where people stood during the corpse-stitching, he identifies key points but cannot solve the method’s central principle.
• At the prison, Xu Feng hears imprisoned Earth-Fire Cult members chanting. Seeing the Prison God positioned to face the prison’s baleful energy gives him the insight he needs: the Ghost-Trapping Method’s purpose depends on where it is built and how it directs spiritual forces—not merely on its pattern. The method can trap, kill, or subdue ghosts.
• His skill advances from Initial Exposure to Understanding, then Mastery. The head jailer then asks him to take the seat of honor.

Character developments

• Xu Feng grows more perceptive and ambitious, applying his learning to Old Owl’s estate and his shrine design. His relentless study culminates in a major breakthrough and mastery of the Ghost-Trapping Method.
• Master remains supportive and patient, providing Xu Feng with information while cautioning him not to underestimate Old Owl’s achievement.
• The Old Shopkeeper recognizes Xu Feng’s formidable reputation and becomes wary of the strange, potentially dangerous project he is building.
• Old Ma accepts personal responsibility for the ceremony’s arrangements, keeping the yamen and its runners insulated from potential blame.

Significant themes

• Knowledge through observation and deduction: Xu Feng reconstructs Old Owl’s method by studying physical layouts, recalling details, and testing ideas.
• Adaptation and practical purpose: A technique’s effectiveness depends on its setting and intended use; the Ghost-Trapping Method can be adapted to suppress or destroy, not simply contain.
• Reputation and danger: Xu Feng’s name inspires fear and caution, even among experienced craftsmen.
• Tradition and obligation: Funeral customs and the coming prison ceremony show how ritual responsibilities shape people’s lives.

Character interactions

• Xu Feng and his Master discuss the coming disorder and visit Old Owl’s family together; Xu Feng offers incense and gently engages with the grandsons.
• Xu Feng explains his shrine plans to the Old Shopkeeper, who advises him to direct the individual craftsmen himself.
• Master answers Xu Feng’s questions about the night of the corpse-stitching, helping him reconstruct the array’s layout.
• At the prison, the head jailer formally addresses Xu Feng as “Your Highness” and directs him to the honored seat.

Key plot points and events

• Xu Feng takes the seat beside the Prison God, accepting the concentrated Baleful Aura and foul air. He offers incense, then spends the first part of his watch reciting the Heavenly Venerable’s name without visualization or cultivation.
• At the two-hour signal, he performs the jail’s ritual: burns a paper bearing his Birth Eight Characters, dips the consecrated whip in the water, and makes his rounds with a jailer.
• Xu Feng cracks the whip before the Earth-Fire Cult’s cells. When the jailer calls out the prescribed warning, incense smoke coils around the whip, giving it ritual authority. Xu Feng’s repeated strikes break through an unseen barrier and disrupt the cultists’ chanting.
• The Cult Leader accuses Xu Feng of wrongdoing, but Xu Feng silently rejects the charge and continues whipping. By the end of the circuit, some prisoners have fainted and the cultists’ plans appear to have been irreparably damaged.
• Xu Feng suspects he has shattered the “Golden Urn” needed for the prisoners’ hoped-for transformation into Corpse-Liberation Immortals. Their killing intent rises, but yellow talismans restrain them.
• Outside the jail, the Daoist explains that the cult has coerced a jailer by taking his family and intends to smuggle in a treasure to kill the Prison-Guarding Suppressor. The plan depends on whether Xu Feng can disrupt their operation—but his first round has already drawn someone’s attention.

Character developments and interactions

• Xu Feng moves from quiet, disciplined preparation to confident action once he discovers the whip works. He remains focused despite the prisoners’ hostility and his personal hatred of the Cult Leader.
• The head jailer begins doubtful and anxious, but becomes hopeful after witnessing the whip’s effect. He orders food and drink to keep Xu Feng strong.
• The jailer accompanying Xu Feng is initially startled by Xu Feng’s premature strike, then follows the ritual script and helps activate the whip’s full power.
• The Earth-Fire Cult Leader watches Xu Feng and condemns him, while the cultists fall silent and turn their attention toward the two men.
• Old Ma and the Daoist discuss the danger beyond the jail and the threatened Prison-Guarding Suppressor, revealing the larger stakes behind Xu Feng’s assignment.

Significant themes

• Ritual and practical power: The whip’s force becomes effective when paired with the jailer’s prescribed words and the Prison God’s incense.
• Patience and disciplined faith: Xu Feng recites without expecting an immediate reward, then acts decisively when the ritual demands it.
• Consequences and accountability: Xu Feng sees the cultists’ threatened immortality as no excuse for their actions, while the Cult Leader’s accusation strikes him as hypocritical.
• Hope amid danger: The jailers’ fear gives way to optimism when Xu Feng’s first circuit succeeds, though the cult’s response signals that the threat is far from over.

Key plot points and events

• Xu Feng begins the first night of his prison vigil, posing as a heaven-sent “Prince” who wards the prison. The jailers interpret his hostility toward the Earth-Fire Cult as divine judgment and treat him with growing reverence.
• Earlier lashes have broken the cultists’ protective Golden Urns: more than half are too weakened to pursue immortality and may be unable to survive execution spiritually. The remaining members silently curse Xu Feng, but their spells do not affect him.
• Xu Feng suspects that other Earth-Fire Cult branches may be involved when a meal-delivering jailer goes missing. He keeps the food and water he has, expecting trouble.
• The next “Riding Lord” ritual uses Xu Feng himself as the “horse,” enclosed in a paper effigy. A waist drum—made from the hide of a broken Grievance Drum—is fastened around him.
• When Xu Feng beats the drum during the procession, its thunderous sound shatters the cultists’ remaining protections. The prison’s incense smoke is drawn toward the drum, and the game reports that the Prison God’s favor toward Xu Feng has greatly increased.
• A cultist attacks Xu Feng with a concealed, corrosive projectile fired from his mouth. Xu Feng dodges by instinct, and the attack only intensifies his fury. He continues beating the drum until nearly every cultist is incapacitated.
• The Earth-Fire Cult Leader remains unharmed and tells Xu Feng that he has “missed his chance.” Xu Feng tests him with Ritual Rice, but it has no effect; the leader repeats his warning.

Character developments

• Xu Feng grows more confident in his role as the prison’s divine enforcer. He recognizes that the rituals and objects around him can have real power, and responds to the assassination attempt with renewed resolve.
• The Cult Leader is revealed as far more resilient than his followers. He remains composed, hides his intentions, and appears to see Xu Feng as an obstacle—or a test—on his path to immortality.
• The head jailer becomes unusually deferential toward Xu Feng and takes personal care in preparing the ritual, especially in explaining the drum.
• The remaining cultists shift from silent cursing to desperate resistance, including a coordinated, concealed attack.

Significant themes

• Faith and practical power: The jailers’ belief that Xu Feng is divinely possessed shapes their behavior, while the rituals themselves produce tangible supernatural effects.
• Justice and spiritual consequence: Xu Feng’s actions threaten not only the cultists’ lives but also their hopes of becoming immortals or ghosts.
• Escalation and retaliation: Each attempt to weaken Xu Feng prompts a harsher response, turning the prison ritual into a direct confrontation.
• Hidden danger: The cultists’ apparent helplessness conceals lethal methods, and the Cult Leader’s calm suggests a larger conflict still to come.

Character interactions

• The jailers defer to Xu Feng and arrange the “Riding Lord” procession, while the head jailer explains the waist drum’s history.
• The Earth-Fire Cultists glare at and curse Xu Feng; during the procession, one acts on the Cult Leader’s signal and launches a concealed attack.
• Xu Feng and the Cult Leader exchange a tense, restrained confrontation. The leader warns Xu Feng that his opportunity has passed, while Xu Feng answers by testing him with Ritual Rice.

Plot points and events

• The Cult Leader warns Xu Feng that the Evil-Expelling ritual ends at dawn: if Xu cannot break the prisoners’ protection tonight, he will have no further chance before their execution.
• Xu refuses to be intimidated or drawn into a moral argument. He says he came to ward the prisoners, not kill them, and even promises to give the Cult Leader a respectful burial if he dies.
• During the night, cats howl and frightening supernatural shapes appear outside the prison. Xu remains calm, trusting the Prison God’s protection; his composure reassures the jailers.
• Before dawn, the jailers begin the final rite to establish Xu as a Prison-Warding Immortal Official. They dress him in ceremonial regalia and paint his face. The Cult Leader revives the cultists’ resistance with a chant, and they transform into frightening, cobra-like “Human-Snakes.”
• Xu’s Status Bar grants him Aid of the Grand Sacrifice, connecting him to divine power through ritual offerings. Carried forward by the jailers, he takes a whip and snaps it once. The sound disperses the cultists’ power, leaving them unable to resist.
• Xu enters the cells and marks the prisoners’ foreheads with cinnabar, breaking their Golden Bodies. The Cult Leader withstands the first mark, so Xu adds strokes to his chest, throat, and spine, weakening but not fully defeating him. The executioner and Daoists will have to finish the task.

Character developments

• Xu Feng stays composed under threats and supernatural pressure. His principled refusal to hate the Cult Leader contrasts with his practical determination to disable the prisoners safely.
• The Cult Leader remains defiant and committed to his path to immortality, but his revived followers’ power collapses before Xu’s ritual authority. He accepts the forehead mark rather than submit to the indignity of a heavy cangue.
• The jailers move from fear and uncertainty to trust in Xu, eventually helping carry him, restrain the prisoners, and carry out the ritual.

Significant themes

• Ritual and authority: The ceremony transforms Xu’s role and gives him access to divine power; spectacle, offerings, and official protection become practical forces.
• Compassion versus hostility: Xu refuses the Cult Leader’s invitation to hatred, even while taking necessary action against him.
• The cost of ambition: The prisoners’ pursuit of immortality ends in confinement and shattered spiritual defenses.
• Courage amid fear: Xu’s calm presence steadies the jailers as supernatural threats gather outside.

Character interactions

• Xu and the Cult Leader exchange threats and arguments over immortality, demons, and revenge; Xu answers hostility with an offer of respectful funeral care.
• The jailers look to Xu for reassurance, then support him through the rite by carrying him, handing him the whip and brush, and restraining the prisoners.
• The Cult Leader’s chant briefly rallies the cultists against Xu, but Xu’s single whip-crack breaks their momentum and lets him mark them.

Key plot points and events

• After three days posing as the Prison-Warding Immortal Official, Xu Feng completes the prison ritual, helping send the prisoners away and earning favor from Luoyin County’s Prison God.
• He draws foul air, yin energy, and violent energy out of the prison to ease the pressure building there, then works with Master to guide the restless souls upward. This restores Xu Feng’s Yin Virtue Protection, now lasting a month.
• At the execution ground, Uncle Liu swiftly beheads the Earth-Fire Cultists. Most bodies decay immediately, suggesting their Golden Bodies and cultivation have been broken. The Cult Leader’s corpse, however, remains unchanged despite the execution and a ritual cleansing, leaving Xu Feng to suspect that something is still unresolved.
• Back at the Earth God Shrine, a patched-robed Daoist delivers a box containing the long-awaited Thunderfire Cinnabar and gives the date for the planned rescue: seven days later, at the first quarter of the Zi hour. The opportunity will last only as long as a cup of tea.

Character developments and interactions

• Xu Feng acts with growing confidence and foresight: he uses the prison ritual not only to gain divine favor but also to reduce the danger posed by accumulated restless spirits. He remains alert to possible cultist interference at the executions and recognizes that the Cult Leader’s fate may be different from the others’.
• The head jailer interprets Xu Feng’s departure as a beneficial cleansing and protects the open prison entrance, showing his trust in Xu Feng’s work.
• Master supports Xu Feng’s rites, helps build the souls’ ascent platform, and brings the Knife and Ritual Robe to the execution ground. His excitement and trembling when he receives the box reveal how deeply he has awaited the rescue plan.
• Uncle Liu performs the executions with practiced efficiency, while the Daoist’s brief delivery confirms that Master’s arrangements with his teacher—and with Liu Guang—are now complete.

Significant themes

• Ritual, belief, and practical action: Xu Feng’s ceremonies have tangible effects, while the jailers and officials interpret them through their own beliefs and customs.
• Balance and containment: Releasing some of the prison’s foul energy is a preemptive effort to reduce the force of a future disaster.
• Fate and unfinished business: The Cult Leader’s unusual corpse suggests that legal execution and ritual purification may not be enough to settle every case.
• Preparation and narrow opportunity: The promised rescue depends on precise timing and a very short window.

Key plot points and events

• At the Earth God Shrine, Xu Feng confirms the Ghost-Trapping Array’s details with the Old Shopkeeper. Notices must be buried at the sacred sites before work can begin.
• Master explains the rescue plan: they will wait for a fierce autumn thunderstorm, use Thunderfire Cinnabar and eight prepared positions around the Village Stele to break open the Lost-Trace Forest, then enter the Underground Palace and reach Li Family Village.
• Xu Feng will go underground with a long safety rope and a Fire Basin to retrieve Grandmaster’s body. Master will stay aboveground to coordinate and call for help.
• Xu Feng investigates the forest, but finds no sign of the Ghost Face. He then searches for books about Mount Feng, buying a mixed collection of genuine Daoist texts and dubious writings.
• In the county, he sees the Earth-Fire Cult Leader’s head displayed on the wall. Though marked with protective symbols, it remains eerily lifelike.
• Master collects his promised debt from the Barefoot Immortals of Fisherfolk Village: fish. Xu Feng is made to eat several powerful Great Fish Essences over multiple days, leaving him dangerously overheated and physically overwhelmed.
• On the night before the planned operation, Xu Feng and Master set out for the Lost-Trace Forest with a donkey cart of supplies. Xu Feng is unusually powerful and perceptive after eating a rare golden fish.

Character development

• Xu Feng shows growing confidence and practical judgment. He accepts the dangerous underground role and persuades Master that one of them must remain aboveground to summon help.
• Master’s years of longing to recover Grandmaster’s body are clear, but he trusts Xu Feng enough to let him lead the descent.
• Xu Feng’s fish-enhanced abilities appear to surpass normal human limits, though he is wary of how these changes might affect him in the tomb.

Significant themes

• Duty and trust: Master and disciple divide their roles according to what gives the rescue the best chance, even when emotion pulls them in another direction.
• Preparation and ritual: The rescue depends on careful planning, sacred procedures, tools, timing, and coordination—not merely bravery.
• The cost of power: The fish grant extraordinary abilities, but their effects are physically taxing and potentially unsettling.
• The uncanny beneath the ordinary: The forest, mixed-up religious texts, and apparently living severed head suggest that danger and supernatural forces persist throughout everyday life.

Character interactions

• Xu Feng and the Old Shopkeeper discuss the array and the construction preparations, with Xu Feng providing the technical details and the Shopkeeper organizing the workers.
• Master explains the rescue plan and tests whether Xu Feng resents being sent alone. Xu Feng answers calmly, emphasizing that someone must remain aboveground.
• Master and Xu Feng share a lighter exchange when Master reveals his “debt” is fish, though the resulting meals become a severe ordeal for Xu Feng.
• Old Ma helps Xu Feng search for books, while Xu Feng assesses the misleading texts and chooses to treat them as collections of stories.

Plot points and events

• Xu Feng and Master travel toward the Lost-Trace Forest, carrying extensive supplies for their planned tomb expedition. Xu Feng’s strength is nearing its peak, boosted by the lingering effects of a rare fish essence.
• They discover a large pack of unusually big, blood-eyed wild dogs arranged as if in formation. Concerned that the pack may threaten their plans—or nearby people—Xu Feng goes ahead to investigate while Master waits.
• Xu Feng uses signal rockets to startle the dogs, then attacks them with his extraordinary strength and whiplike sleeves. Instead of fleeing, the pack circles around something deeper in the forest.
• Following the dogs’ movements, Xu Feng reaches the Li Family Village Stele and finds a giant, seemingly intelligent dog king with two enormous guards. Corpses of Earth-Fire Cult members and tomb robbers lie nearby, along with a glowing object that may have come from a tomb.
• Xu Feng kills the king with his Meteoritic Iron Treasure Blade and disables its guards. The pack scatters, while the forest itself seems to turn hostile. He damages the glowing object and flees.
• As Xu Feng runs back toward Master, the boundary stele appears to shift and mist gathers. He suspects the forest’s danger is increasing with the hour, rather than being caused solely by the dog king’s death.

Character development

• Xu Feng shows growing confidence and initiative: he recognizes the danger, makes the decision to investigate, and handles the threat largely on his own. His increased strength and dark-vision-related abilities make him far more capable than before, though he still recognizes the risk of being surrounded.
• Master remains cautious and protective. He allows Xu Feng to go despite his anxiety, trusting the disciple’s abilities while staying ready to intervene.

Character interactions

• Xu Feng and Master work as a cautious team: Master controls the cart and waits nearby, while Xu Feng scouts and acts. Master’s concern contrasts with Xu Feng’s resolve.
• Xu Feng briefly appeals to several gods for protection before attacking, reflecting both his spiritual beliefs and awareness of the danger.

Significant themes

• Human limits and changing strength: Xu Feng’s power is approaching a physical peak, even as supernatural forces complicate ordinary ideas of strength and safety.
• Courage tempered by caution: Xu Feng acts decisively but plans around the dogs’ senses, uses distance and surprise, and retreats once his task is complete.
• Nature turned hostile: The dogs behave with organized, almost human intelligence, while the forest itself appears capable of shifting and attacking.
• Timing and fate: The forest’s danger seems linked to particular hours, suggesting that survival depends not only on strength but also on understanding supernatural rules.

Plot points and events

• Xu Feng kills the dog king and reports to Master that the Lost-Trace Forest is clear of the wild dogs, tomb raiders, and Earth-Fire Cult members.
• Master prepares the Wandering Dragon Strikes the Sha ritual to exploit the coming autumn thunder and rupture the Earth Vein. Xu Feng plants eight marked nails and buries Thunderfire Cinnabar at their designated points; the two then connect the nails with channels.
• At midnight, linked Fire Basins are lit using Xu Feng’s Eight Characters, creating a lifeline meant to guide him back. A storm strikes, and the ritual triggers a massive explosion that destroys the Lost-Trace Forest and exposes Li Family Village.
• Master sends Xu Feng into the village to rescue Grandmaster, warning him to keep the Fire Basin burning and the Incense-Fire Thread intact.
• The village is shrouded in uncanny darkness and contains transformed corpses, including a villager whose body has developed scales and hornlike growths. The thunder’s lingering power and Xu Feng’s Owl Button help him pass safely.
• Xu Feng reaches the Earth God Shrine, descends into the ruined Underground Palace, and finds Grandmaster’s corpse fused with that of the grave robber he had come to sew. He ties himself to a rope, but entering the banquet hall triggers an illusion of an endless feast.
• Xu Feng wraps the bodies in his Ritual Robe and tries to escape. After he cuts the rope, a chilling gust extinguishes his Fire Basin. His Earth Uncle Protective Talisman blocks an attack, while the village begins shaking violently. Xu Feng grabs both bodies and flees.
• Outside, Master sees his own basin go out and rushes to help, but Li Family Village collapses underground before he can reach it. The chapter ends with Xu Feng’s fate uncertain.

Character developments and interactions

• Xu Feng shows stamina, composure, and quick instincts: he follows the ritual carefully, keeps moving despite the terrifying surroundings, and prioritizes the rescue over his own safety. His exchanges with Master establish trust, though Master insists Xu Feng rest before the dangerous mission.
• Master is methodical and protective, building multiple safeguards and giving Xu Feng clear instructions. When the connection fails, he immediately attempts to rescue his disciple.
• Old Owl, though absent, remains crucial: his earlier calculations and knowledge make the ritual possible and guide Xu Feng through the Underground Palace.
• Xu Feng’s brief encounter with the transformed villager highlights the danger of the village’s corpses; the creature does not attack, apparently held back by the thunder’s influence and the Owl Button.

Significant themes

• Preparation versus uncertainty: elaborate precautions improve Xu Feng’s odds, but the extinguished fire and sudden collapse show that no plan can control every supernatural danger.
• Duty and sacrifice: Xu Feng enters the transformed village to rescue Grandmaster, while Master risks following him when the lifeline fails.
• Ritual power and the natural world: the ritual does not summon the storm; it redirects a force already coming, showing the characters’ attempts to harness rather than command nature.
• Death, transformation, and illusion: the corpses’ grotesque changes and the false banquet blur the boundary between the living world and the Underworld, suggesting that the failed path to immortality has left the place trapped in delusion.

Plot points and events

• The collapse of Li Family Village extinguishes Xu Feng’s Fire Basin and raises a cloud of dust, leaving Master terrified that his apprentice has died. Master crawls toward the ruins despite his injuries.
• Xu Feng emerges carrying Grandmaster’s body. With help from the spirits bound to his Yin Virtue Protection, he escaped the collapsing village, then went back to restrain Grandmaster and a stitched villager who were trying to get out.
• Xu Feng and Master flee when Xu Feng senses a growing supernatural danger. From a distance, Xu Feng sees a shifting, vapor-like presence circling Lost-Trace Forest, extinguishing flames and killing everything in its path.
• Looking through the Precious Mirror, Xu Feng realizes the presence is an enormous Ghost Face—so large that, when he was inside the village, its darkness filled the Mirror’s view. It had let him leave, possibly after he threw Ritual Rice onto it. Though his Protective Talisman remains intact, Xu Feng fears the creature may have another plan, so they flee farther.
• Back at the Earth God Shrine, Master and Xu Feng prepare to perform Corpse Stitching on Grandmaster and the villager. Their usual protections are unavailable or ineffective, so Master proposes using the calamity he previously stitched to pin the corpses down.
• As Xu Feng opens his Ritual Robe, the shed plunges into darkness. The stitched calamity restrains the corpses, allowing Master to strike them with an iron shovel so they can proceed with the ritual.

Character development and interactions

• Master is overwhelmed by fear for Xu Feng, but the two initially talk past each other, each checking whether the other is safe. He later takes charge of the dangerous corpse-stitching preparations.
• Xu Feng proves resourceful and resilient, escaping the collapse with the help of Yin Virtue Protection. His confidence gives way to dread as he recognizes the scale of the Ghost Face and realizes it may have deliberately spared him.
• The apprentice and master show mutual concern and trust: Xu Feng rushes to check Master, while Master’s fear for Xu Feng drives him toward the ruins.
• Master apologizes in advance for any offense they may cause before using the stitched calamity. Xu Feng only understands why when Master starts beating Grandmaster’s body into submission.

Significant themes

• Survival and protection: Xu Feng survives through ingenuity, supernatural aid, and a protective talisman, while Master’s first concern is his safety.
• The limits of understanding and control: The Ghost Face is immense and inscrutable; Xu Feng can only infer why it let him escape.
• Duty and uneasy necessity: The pair must use force against Grandmaster’s body to carry out the ritual, despite their respect and regret.
• Dark humor amid horror: Xu Feng’s game-like comparisons and his apologetic thought to Grandmaster undercut the chapter’s intense danger.

Plot points and events

• Xu Feng helps his master subdue two powerful corpses, which have become Demon Corpses after their transformations. He realizes that both bodies are fundamentally corrupted, not merely suffering from disordered qi.
• Xu Feng and his master break the corpses down and painstakingly repair them, replacing organs and setting bones. They restore Grandmaster’s remains to a human shape so he can be given a dignified funeral, though they must keep his coffin off the ground to prevent Earth Qi from reanimating him.
• While his master is away, Xu Feng experiments with Stitching Calamity, sewing Dragon-Head Miasma onto his ritual robe. The work strengthens his existing Monster Strength skill, though it does not produce a new skill.
• Worried that others will discover the danger in Lost-Trace Forest, Xu Feng spreads a warning that a demon is capturing people there.
• While preparing the second corpse for burning, Xu Feng finds a valuable Yellow Emperor-Certified Knife Token among its belongings. Remembering his promise, he gives it to Doctor Qi, whose favorability toward him rises.
• Doctor Qi offers to tell Xu Feng something, but Xu Feng declines. On returning, Xu Feng learns from his master that the Earth-Fire Cult secretly removed the beheaded corpses.

Character developments and interactions

• Xu Feng shows growing confidence and practical judgment under pressure, taking the lead in disabling and repairing the corpses. He is also more serious about the consequences of his craft and the boundary between life and death.
• Xu Feng recognizes that his master’s long effort to “stitch” Grandmaster was really an attempt to cope with grief. His master appears relieved once Grandmaster’s remains are restored, suggesting the task has lifted a long-standing burden.
• Xu Feng and his master work closely as partners, discussing the underlying cause of the corpses’ condition and deciding to treat that cause before their visible symptoms.
• Xu Feng remains wary of Doctor Qi: he honors his promise by giving him the token but avoids hearing what he has to say.
• The revelation that the Earth-Fire Cult has taken the beheaded corpses introduces a new threat and likely connects to the wider mystery surrounding the dead.

Significant themes

• The limits of bodily transformation: Cicada-Shedding and Snake-Sloughing can transform the body, but neglecting the mind and soul produces something monstrous rather than true transcendence.
• Grief and duty: Xu Feng sees that his master’s work was driven by unresolved sorrow for Grandmaster; restoring the body gives that grief a measure of closure.
• Craft as responsibility: Xu Feng treats corpse-stitching with solemnity, even when working on someone he despises, because the craft involves life, death, and serious consequences.
• Faith, fate, and obligation: Xu Feng appeals to the Earth God for help, follows through on his promise to Doctor Qi, and wonders whether Doctor Qi’s apparent foresight was genuine or simply a matter of leaving events to chance.

Key plot points and events

• Xu Feng asks whether the authorities acted after the deaths at Li Family Village. Master argues that ordinary people have little reason to risk their lives for officials; even a warning is more than the authorities can expect.
• Master gives Xu Feng the three remaining Knife Coins, saying Xu Feng earned them by helping bring the coins out and that Master has no use for them. Xu Feng realizes he had been preparing to bargain unnecessarily.
• Xu Feng’s Corpse Stitching remains at Furnace Mastery, which seems to be its current ceiling; advancing further will require a different or more specialized method.
• Xu Feng identifies two coins as Yellow Emperor Appeal Coins and the third as a Youdu Lord Appeal Coin. The Yellow Emperor coins can serve as more than currency, granting access, settling underworld debts, or substituting for punishment. The Youdu coin has similar uses and can offer protection, though its associated deity seems ancient and largely forgotten.
• Xu Feng investigates the Lost-Trace Forest at dusk. A visible Baleful Aura forms there as night approaches, but is weak at twilight and disappears by day. He postpones trying to stitch it until the Longflow River God returns and provides a stronger Incense-Fire Thread.
• Xu Feng and Master cremate Grandmaster with his coffin and bury him.
• Doctor Qi offers Xu Feng a remedy in exchange for a Knife Coin. Master explains that Qi is a Yin Physician—a person who died as an infant, returned under uncanny circumstances, and gained medicine from a ghost or deity. Such physicians can grant extraordinary benefits, but their prices and prescriptions are dangerous and mysterious.
• Xu Feng accepts the risk and meets Doctor Qi at the third watch. After examining him, Qi says the source of Xu Feng’s troubles is buried in Third Grandpa Temple Village.

Character developments and interactions

• Xu Feng shows caution and self-awareness: he thinks through the unequal nature of his bond with Master, then recognizes his own pettiness when Master freely gives him the coins. He also weighs the risks of Doctor Qi’s offer before accepting it.
• Master demonstrates affection and generosity, giving Xu Feng the coins without hesitation. Yet his satisfaction after avenging Grandmaster’s lifelong grievance leaves him looking strangely empty and detached.
• Doctor Qi remains courteous but unsettling. He does not force Xu Feng to accept treatment, though his decaying appearance and cryptic explanation deepen the sense that his powers are supernatural.
• Xu Feng and Master share a trusting exchange: Xu Feng brings Master the offer, and Master explains the dangers of Yin Physicians, while leaving the decision to him.

Significant themes

• Affection within unequal relationships: Master and disciple remain bound by a hierarchy, but personal care softens its harsher realities.
• The cost of supernatural aid: Extraordinary remedies and privileges may come with obscure or perilous prices.
• Death, belief, and forgotten powers: The coins connect earthly life to the underworld, while the Youdu Lord and other old powers may have faded into irrelevance.
• Limits and uncertainty: Xu Feng has reached a skill ceiling, cannot yet confront the forest’s Baleful Aura, and accepts that some mysteries must wait for the right moment.

Key events

• Xu Feng questions Doctor Qi, the Yin Physician, about his prescription. Qi says he is treating Xu Feng’s fate, not a physical illness: the Earth-Fire Cult is the root of Xu Feng’s troubles, so its destruction is the cure. His map points to Third Grandpa Temple Village.
• Xu Feng consults his Master, who confirms that Yin Physicians can treat calamities and even prolong life—but their prices are so severe that seeking one out is usually worse than dying. Master accepts Qi’s prescription as genuine.
• Convinced the Earth-Fire Cult may be behind the Cult Leader’s corpse and other disasters, Xu Feng decides to act before the cult can proceed. He and Master travel to Third Grandpa Temple Village.
• Temple Priest Mr. Li discovers a fresh grave-robbing tunnel and several other disturbed sites. They contain numerous Wet Corpses, some buried for years and still alive. No offerings or signs of Houtu Goddess’s protection remain.
• Mr. Li explains that the Three Matron Temple will soon be abandoned, he himself will soon die, and the deity has departed. With the temple’s authority gone, people have begun exploiting the village’s unusual terrain.
• Mr. Li retrieves the Earth-Fire Cult Leader’s corpse, beneath which lies another corpse that has undergone Cicada-Shedding and Snake-Sloughing. Xu Feng stitches the Cult Leader’s corpse, ending its remaining threat, then stitches many of the other bodies.
• Overwhelmed by the gruesome work, Xu Feng pauses at the Longflow River God. Back in reality, he discovers that although the game felt like an entire lifetime, only one minute has passed.

Character developments and interactions

• Xu Feng shifts from skepticism about Qi to cautiously believing in his abilities. His concern about the game’s deeper dangers also echoes his anxiety about facing reality without a mentor. He becomes more proactive, determined to prevent the Earth-Fire Cult from acting first.
• Doctor Qi presents himself as a forceful, unconventional physician who claims to treat fate itself. His knowledge of the village and his cryptic “earth-fire” prescription leave Xu Feng unsure how much he understands.
• Master reassures Xu Feng that Yin Physicians are genuinely powerful and agrees to accompany him to the village. He supports Xu Feng during the investigation and corpse-stitching.
• Mr. Li moves from welcoming host to a grave, decisive investigator. He recognizes the scale of the desecration, thanks the two Corpse Stitchers for revealing it, and helps Xu Feng by serving as a suppressing and protective presence during the ritual.
• The chapter highlights the trust and cooperation among Xu Feng, Master, and Mr. Li, while contrasting their efforts with the unseen people exploiting the village.

Significant themes

• The world’s hidden depth: Xu Feng realizes that his experience of the game has barely touched its larger, more dangerous reality.
• Fate and causation: The Yin Physician treats Xu Feng’s troubles as an interconnected fate rooted in the Earth-Fire Cult, rather than as isolated incidents.
• Declining spiritual authority: The deity’s departure and the temple’s coming abandonment leave the village vulnerable to human exploitation.
• Duty and closure: By stitching the corpses, Xu Feng prevents further harm and helps Mr. Li learn what happened before he dies.
• Time distortion: Xu Feng’s intense in-game experience contrasts sharply with the mere minute that passes outside.

Chapter summary

Key plot points

• Xu Feng returns from the game world and assesses what he has brought back. His real body now feels weaker than Zhao San’s, while the intensive corpse-stitching has improved his skill: he can spot physical irregularities in corpses at a glance and judge whether they might reanimate.
• After resting, he inventories his equipment: seven Dragon-Tiger Plasters, a Precious Mirror, a Protective Talisman, Ritual Rice, two Knife Coins, and an Owl Button. He deliberately leaves behind the dangerous Meteoritic Iron Treasure Blade and Robe of a Hundred Virtues because he has no reliable way to control their hostile force.
• Xu Feng organizes the mysteries around him into a research plan. He will begin with the village’s suspicious Earth God shrine niche, trace the craftsmen who built it through the convenience-store owner, and investigate Song Chuming, the Daoist associated with the Great King Temple and the Giant Alligator.
• Using the Precious Mirror, he sees colorful, tangled forces across Yunjia Mountain, but nothing clearly alive or alarming. At the mountain’s foot, however, he finds a mass of black qi that appears to contain a headless Giant Alligator.
• Xu Feng suspects that the Giant Alligator may be the entity called Grandpa Earth, and that its killings could be revenge after Song Chuming beheaded and suppressed it. He considers whether Song Chuming’s methods might help contain it. The mirror cannot reveal the lines above Xu Feng’s head, suggesting they are not related to ordinary celestial or feng-shui forces.
• A phone notification brings new information about colleagues who died accidentally. Xu Feng marks their locations and expands his data searches, including terms such as “Yang Spirit” and recruitment notices from other provinces. He hopes patterns in the data will reveal what is happening, though he worries that the information sources may be unreliable.

Character development

• Xu Feng is mentally tougher and more methodical. He recognizes the danger of acting on a theory simply because it seems sound, avoids carrying items he cannot control, and chooses to investigate one clue at a time.
• His time in Luoyin County has also changed his outlook: he is more prepared to confront both supernatural threats and ordinary people, while still acknowledging that he needs evidence and careful planning.

Significant themes

• Learning through experience: Repeated corpse-stitching has sharpened Xu Feng’s judgment, though he knows skill does not eliminate the need for caution.
• Knowledge and uncertainty: The Precious Mirror provides clues but not answers; Xu Feng must compare what he sees with earlier evidence and distinguish genuine things from imitations.
• Risk and restraint: The most powerful tools may be the most dangerous, and an effective plan can still be impractical if its risks cannot be managed.
• Investigation and pattern-finding: Xu Feng combines firsthand investigation with computer-based data collection, treating the mysteries as interconnected but tackling them systematically.

Character interactions

• Xu Feng works with his computer and web crawler as research partners, assigning them online information-gathering while he handles fieldwork.
• He revisits the apparent connection between Song Chuming, the Giant Alligator, and Grandpa Earth, hoping Song Chuming’s past actions may offer a way to protect people now.
• The chapter also points toward the convenience-store owner, the shrine’s builders, Xu Feng’s colleagues, and people such as Madman as possible sources or subjects for future investigation.